Heavy trucks may move to Memorial Bridge during convention
Vehicles weighing more than 5 tons will be banned from Interstate 95 near the Wells Fargo Arena, which could translate into heavy traffic on alternate routes
- Road closures are planned around the Wells Fargo Arena for the Democratic National Convention.
- Heavy trucks also will be banned on Interstate 95 in Philadelphia.
- Included in the list are delivery trucks, cement mixers, motor homes and buses.
Traffic restrictions during the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia could mean more truck traffic on the Delaware Memorial Bridge.
The Secret Service is banning vehicles more than 5 tons from Interstate 95 between interstates 76 and 676 in Philadelphia from Saturday to July 29. Several streets around the Wells Fargo Center in South Philadelphia also will be closed.
Truckers are being told to find new routes during the convention, which is projected to bring 50,000 attendees and thousands of media members.
More than 20,000 tractor-trailers travel on I-95 in Delaware each day and a high percentage of those carry goods to or from points north of Philadelphia, said Lee Derrickson, executive director of the Delaware Motor Transport Association, a trade group.
Truckers prefer I-95 through Philadelphia and into Delaware rather than the parallel route along the New Jersey Turnpike because the route costs $55 less in southbound tolls and $30 less in northbound tolls, Derrickson said. The 5-ton vehicle prohibition will place a financial strain on shipping companies with small profit margins, he said.
"I would say a lot of (tractor-trailers) will take the Delaware Memorial Bridge instead," he said. "It's a nuisance, and it's going to cost (truckers) extra money."
More than $19 million worth of goods are shipped to or from the Delmarva Peninsula daily, which includes I-95 in New Castle County and Cecil County, Maryland, according to the Wilmington Area Planning Council. Items range from bananas from the Port of Wilmington or retail products from Amazon's distribution center in Middletown.
In addition to increasing toll costs, Derrickson worries the truck prohibition will increase congestion. Each additional hour a heavy-duty trucker spends on the road costs an average of $67.
"The Wal-Marts and grocery stores won't shut down just for the convention," said Derrickson. "They still need their items."
The Democratic National Convention is July 25-28, with presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton scheduled to speak the last day. Vice President Joe Biden is scheduled to address delegates on July 27.
Similar traffic restrictions are in place for the Republican National Convention this week in Cleveland.
I-95 passes within about 600 feet of the Wells Fargo Center.
The truck ban will be enforced by police, and there will be hundreds of signs placed on the interstate prior to Philadelphia, said Rich Kirkpatrick, spokesman for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.
Byron Johnson, an independent trucker from Greensboro, North Carolina pulled his rig into the Delaware Welcome Center Travel Plaza along I-95 Monday evening. For many owner, operators like him, marginal increases in costs can mean the difference between a profitable haul and a loss.
“It’s going to hurt a lot of drivers if they’re going to have to pay (more) tolls, especially the owner-operators like me,” Johnson said.
Still, it is wise of the Secret Service to shut down the interstate to trucks, he said, given the recent violent attacks that have occurred in the U.S. and around the world.
Included in the list of banned vehicles are delivery trucks, cement mixers, motor homes and buses. The interstate will remain open to passenger vehicles.
The Secret Service also announced that the I-95 off-ramp at Broad Street will close for most of the convention week.
The disruptions should not severely impact Delaware drivers, said Gene Donaldson, traffic manager at the Delaware Department of Transportation, as the number of attendees at the convention will be similar to that of a professional baseball or football game in the area. Unlike the visit of Pope Francis to Philadelphia in September, road impacts will be limited to the city, he said.
"Looking at the numbers, it's not really a traffic issue," Donaldson said. "It's more of a security matter."
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Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority officials also said transit disruptions will not be as severe as they were during the papal visit when some train stations were closed entirely, and regional rail service operated on a special, express schedule.
But regional rail disruptions that have been impacting commuter rail riders since early July – including on the Wilmington line – will continue during the event.
The rail agency took 120 passenger cars out of circulation after officials identified structural defects in their undercarriage suspensions. SEPTA has leased replacement cars from transit agencies in New Jersey and Maryland to offset the loss, but service is still running less frequently than normal.
SEPTA does not expect it to be fully restored by the convention week, said Andrews Busch, spokesman for SEPTA.
Cars are still being tested "to determine the root cause of the problem ... they will be brought back on as they're available," Busch said. "We have some buses that are going to be servicing the delegates."
Contact Karl Baker at kbaker@delawareonline.com or (302) 324-2329. Follow him on Twitter @kbaker6.
I-95 ramp closures
The Broad Street exit ramp (Route 611/Exit 17) off of I-95 in South Philadelphia will close at the following times during the Democratic National Convention.
Northbound: 10 p.m. July 22 to noon July 29
Southbound: 10 p.m. July 22 to 6 a.m. July 23; 2 p.m. July 25, 26 and 27 until 2 the next morning; and 2 p.m. July 28 to noon July 29.
